Here's a statement of the obvious: The opinions expressed here are those of the participants, not those of the Mutual Fund Observer. We cannot vouch for the accuracy or appropriateness of any of it, though we do encourage civility and good humor.
"One of the wealthiest countries in the world– the place where there are more millionaires per capita than anywhere else on the planet– now has a dirt cheap stock market. It’s Singapore. And right now, the total market value of all stocks traded in Singapore amounts to about 107% of the country’s GDP. The historical range for this number over the past few decades has as high as 418% during the bubble years in the 1990s, and as low as 92% at the height of the 2008 financial crisis. This ‘stock market to GDP’ ratio is a hugely important valuation. Warren Buffett considers it “probably the best single measure of where valuations stand at any given moment.” But it’s more than that. Because right now, the Singapore stock market barely trades above book value. If you’re not familiar with the term, a company’s book value is akin to its ‘net worth’. In other words, if you added up all of a company’s assets (cash, real estate, business inventory, etc.) and subtract its liabilities (debt, taxes owed, etc.), you end up with its book value. It’s typical for companies listed on a stock exchange to trade for several times their book value. Facebook’s stock sells for SEVEN times book value. Boeing’s is at THIRTEEN. McDonald’s is nearly SIXTEEN. In Singapore, it’s ONE. This makes Singaporean stocks a much greater bargain than those in the West."
